Event Recap: 48th Annual Pre-Health Symposium
Although the 48th Annual Pre-Health Symposium looked different than its predecessors, Alpha Epsilon Delta’s VP of Scholarly Events, Raylee Warren, and the Pre-Health Symposium Chairs, Garett Petty, Joyce Ahn, Kristen Giebel, and Surabi Naidu, still maintained the heart of the event “to bring in a diverse group of schools that draws in students from all different backgrounds and pre-health designations into a meaningful experience that aids them in their pre-health journey”.
The 48th Annual Pre-Health Symposium (PHS) was hosted by Alpha Epsilon Delta and sponsored by Baylor’s Student Government over the week from February 15, 2021, to February 20, 2021. The event hosted over 40 schools and programs through seven online zoom sessions. A diverse group of schools and programs were represented including Texas Medical & Dental Schools Application Service (TMDSAS), UTHealth School of Dentistry Houston, and the Mayo Clinic Medical School.
Due to the COVID-19 virus and social distancing restrictions, there was much uncertainty surrounding the initial planning of the Pre-Health Symposium. VP of Scholarly Events Raylee Warren stated that “the first couple of months were spent planning out three different versions of Pre-Health Symposium so we could be prepared for whatever format we ended up choosing.” When it was confirmed that the Pre-Health Symposium would be held online, the flurry of emails, zoom meetings, and planning began. In addition to the COVID-19-related delays, there were many “micro-changes happening leading up to the event”. From last minute school cancelations to late additions to snow-induced power-outages, “schools had to be shuffled in the schedule and hosts had to be re-shuffled”. In spite of the changes “happening just days or hours before [the] first night of symposium”, the 48th Pre-Health Symposium was a success offering live zoom sessions to students.
Despite the challenges faced, “achieving [the Pre-Health Symposium] in-person vs online made no difference” to Raylee as she had confidence that “[her] team could make this a reality in any format”. Raylee and her team were fully committed to making the Pre-Health Symposium an event that would allow Baylor Pre-Health students the opportunity to learn about and network with various schools and programs. Ultimately, the goal of the Pre-Health Symposium is to be “a celebration of all the hard work that students have exerted into getting where they are” and an encouragement to “them in their next steps after Baylor”.
Top row: Surabi Naidu, Raylee Warren, and Joyce Ahn
Bottom row: Garett Petty and Kristen Giebel
To Raylee, “the most rewarding part of planning the Pre-Health Symposium has been watching [her] chairs flourish” and “watch[ing] all the hard work pay off”. Though the planning of the Pre-Health Symposium was faced with “unforeseen challenges”, “the strength of [her] chairs gave [her] reassurance that they were more than capable to handle all the unforeseen challenges” and allowed her to “not have to worry”. Raylee recounts that planning the Pre-Health Symposium “has been the most rewarding experience of [her] time here at Baylor”. She is “beyond thankful for [her] chairs, without whom none of this would be possible, for [her] executive board members [who] have been so supportive of [her] and also God for allowing [her] to have this amazing opportunity to bring such an amazing event to all [Baylor] students.”
AED greatly appreciates Raylee, Garett, Joyce, Kristen, and Surabi for their hard work and dedication in planning the 48th Annual Pre-Health Symposium.